Harry Potter and the Heir of Gotchyn
by Melisande
Summary: There is a new girl at Hogwarts and Harry is smitten with her. However, Hermione is certain she is up to no good.....can Hermione save Harry before it's too late? This is my first attempt at fanfiction - PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE read and review!!! :p
1. Harry Potter

Harry Potter and the Heir of Gotchyn

Chapter One

If you peeked through the windows of the Dursley's residence in Privet Drive, you could easily assume that there were only three people living there – Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia and cousin Dudley – and that they were completely normal. Well, I suppose they _are_ completely normal – but if you find yourself peeking through the mail slot in the front door, you may see (with some difficulty, mind you) an entrance to a cupboard under the stairs; if you stood patrol for some time, you may even see a small boy with scruffy brown hair and a lightning scar on his forehead, emerge from that cupboard and disappear down the hallway. Now, my friends, if you had seen that, then you had seen Harry Potter. You see Harry Potter is very different from you, me or the Dursleys – Harry Potter is a wizard (a very good one, at that) and attends Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry under the direction of Professor Dumbledore. 

Harry hadn't known he was a wizard until his eleventh birthday – oh and what a surprise it was! Hagrid, a half-giant Games Keeper at Hogwarts, had come on his bewitched motorbike to take Harry to school and Harry and Hagrid had ridden off into the night, leaving very confused (and transfigured in Dudley's case!) Dursleys behind. 

Harry smiled and rolled over in his bed, remembering that stormy night and had a giggle to himself. Hagrid had bewitched a pig's tail onto Dudley's bottom much to the astonishment (and delight) of Harry. It had been quite a fuss when Harry had returned for his first holidays off school under the care of the Dursley's again and they had been terrified that Harry would put a spell on them, so they tried to keep out of his way.

Harry glanced at his watch and saw that it was 9:34pm. He loved his watch. His friends from school, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley had given it to him last year when they had gone to Hogsmeade and Harry had been unable to go. It was blue and green and glowed in the dark. The numbers kept moving around and laughing at you. So it could be 9:34pm, 3:39pm or 4:39pm. Harry guessed 9:34pm because it was dark outside and the Dursleys were in bed, asleep. 

Tomorrow was a big day. Harry would be travelling to the Weasley's house, The Burrow, and then onto Diagon Alley to get his school supplies. After a very eventful year last year, Harry needed a few extra things, including a new Transfiguration book, as only last week, it had turned into a rat and scuttled away and had only appeared again when Uncle Vernon had shot it, which, of course, rendered it useless, and a new Potions book, which had been ruined when Ron had accidently spilled some sort of undiluted potion on it, causing it to explode in a shower of paper. Ron was always messing up in Potions, which wasn't that good because Snape was the teacher and he had it in for the three of them, especially Harry. Potions lessons were always very interesting. Harry wanted to find out why Snape hated them so much and he was certain it would be sometime this year.

He rolled over and blew out the candle that was burning beside his bed. That saved him the trouble of having to get out of bed to turn of the light, so now he just used candles. And with a smile and a thought of tomorrow's excitement, the little boy called Harry Potter fell into a deep sleep.

*****************************

"So, boy, when are the, erm, _people_ getting here?" Uncle Vernon's face was turning a slight shade of purple as he stood cautiously in the living room. Aunt Petunia was standing slightly behind him, as if she was terrified the Weasleys would explode the fireplace again, like last time they visited. Harry shrugged.

"They said about now, they'll be here soon." He glanced at his watch. 9:55am. He had been up since 5am, the excitement had been too much to allow him to sleep. 

Harry was standing in the middle of the room, with his luggage and Hedwig in her cage piled up next to him. Every so often, Dudley would silently enter the room and attempt to open one of the cases, but would chicken out and run off, clutching his bottom. Harry began to feel impatient and he could tell the Dursleys were getting angry.

"They were like this last time, weren't they? I suppose they expect to get a breakfast if they're that late," Aunt Petunia shrilly said.

"Well they damn well won't," Uncle Vernon said, his face growing an even darker shade of purple. "These … _strange_ people should be grateful we're letting the boy go. If it were up to me I'd…"

At that moment, Mr Weasley appeared through the fireplace. He dusted his hands off on his trousers and looked back at the place through which he had come. "Well, well, well! You installed a real fireplace, just for Harry!"

Uncle Vernon muttered something about insurance and explosions, but Mr Weasley simply turned and beamed at Harry. "Sorry Harry but the rest couldn't come to pick you up. It's just you and me until we get back to The Burrow. Well, let's go."

Mr Weasley bent down and grabbed two of Harry's bags, and set them down in front of the fireplace. He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a little bag of what Harry knew was Floo powder. Mr Weasley took out a pinch and put the bag down. "You take the rest, Harry, and I'll see you at home!"

Harry nodded and with a shout of "The Burrow!" Mr Weasley was scooped up into green flame and disappeared. Harry grabbed Hedwig and another bag and did the same, pausing only to take some Floo powder and yell, very clearly, "The Burrow!" before he disappeared as well into the flames.

He kept a tight hold on Hedwig and his bag as he spiralled and spinned out of control. Travelling by Floo powder always made him a little sick. Everything around him sounded weird and looked even stranger. He shut his eyes tightly and waited.

Then, all of a sudden, he felt his feet on hard ground and stumbled to a stop, opening his eyes. He found himself looking into the eyes of Fred and George Weasley, who took Hedwig and his bag off him, grinning all the while.  
"Hi, Harry! Welcome back to The Burrow!"


	2. Melisande

Disclaimer: I forgot to say this in the previous chapter, but obviously, any characters, names etc. that you recognise don't belong to me and any characters who you don't recognise belong to me. (like Melisande and Gotchyn etc.)  
  
  
  
Chapter Two  
  
Harry looked around him, wiping his hands on his oversized Dudley hand-me-down pants. It felt great to be in the wizarding world again, especially in a house that was so magical, it was breathtaking. The clock on the wall announced that all of the Weasleys, except for the two eldest boys, Bill and Charlie, were at home. Harry guessed that Ron would be up in his room so he headed out of the living room and into the hall.   
"Ah! Harry! How are you, my boy?" Mrs Weasley flung her arms around Harry and gave him a big hug. She broke free and held him at arms length. "My, haven't you grown up!"   
She gave him a broad smile. "Ron is in his room, packing. I'm afraid he's a bit behind schedule. That's why he couldn't pick you up, he's been doing nothing all day. Off you go!"  
Harry smiled and turned to head towards Ron's room.  
"Oh, Harry! Hermione's here as well, she's in Ginny's room, if you'd like to see her!" And with that, Mrs Weasley disappeared into the kitchen.  
At the thought of Hermione, Harry's heart leapt a little. They had been good friends since the first train ride to Hogwarts and over the years, that friendship had begun to feel more personal for Harry. Whenever Hermione hugged him or sat next to him, his heart fluttered and he found himself lost for words, which was very unlike Harry. Hermione hadn't seemed to notice, however, much to Harry's relief. It would be very awkward for The Boy Who Lived to get all breathless over a girl and not even blink an eyelid at fighting You Know Who.  
"Hey, Harry! How are you?" came Ron's cheerful voice from the end of the hall. Harry popped his head into Ron's room and grinned, forgetting the dilemma of Hermione.  
"How was your holiday, Ron?" he asked, sitting on the bed and feeling the bewitched quilt snuggle around him.  
"It was good, Harry. Look what Ginny bought me!" Ron was holding up a rather large book with a picture of the game of Quidditch on the front. The picture was moving, with the men on the broomsticks ducking and swooping and doing all sorts of stunts.   
"It's a biography of the Chudley Cannons, with full-colour photographs of each player!" Ron beamed, flicking through the book. Harry caught glimpses of men grinning and laughing on every couple of pages and smiled himself. This was nothing in the wizarding world. Things got much stranger than moving photographs!  
"Harry! Is that you?" came a shout from the doorway. Harry turned and saw Hermione standing there beside Ginny, who looked as if she were about to throw up with excitement at having The Boy Who Lived in her brother's bedroom. Harry smiled and gave Hermione a huge hug. "This is so exciting Harry. Are you ready to go to Diagon Alley? Mrs Weasley says we should head down there now."  
Harry nodded, but Ron groaned. "I haven't finished packing yet. Mum's going to kill me because we'll be late and it'll be all my fault."  
Hermione sighed and rolled her eyes, reaching into her robes and pulling out her wand. "Here, let me..."  
"No, Hermione!" Harry said loudly. "You know you can't do magic when you're out of Hogwarts! Ron will just have to pack by himself."  
Hermione shrugged and put her wand away. "Ok, whatever. Just hurry up." She spun on her heel and walked away, followed by Ginny.  
Ron was looking confused. "Hermione? She was going to use magic, when she knew she would get in trouble?" he asked Harry.  
"Yeah...that's weird," Harry replied. He shook his head. "Anyway, you'd better pack. Here, I'll help you."  
"Thanks," Ron said. "I can't wait to get back to school."  
"Neither."  
Ten minutes later, both boys were standing in the living room with the rest of the Weasleys. Mrs Weasley was hugging Fred and George.   
"You be good now. I don't want to have to send anyone a Screamer this year," she said sternly.   
Mr Weasley had decided that they would drive to the train station and he had suitably bewitched the car to fit them all in. Harry loaded his stuff in the boot with Ron, then climbed in the back, next to Hermione.  
"Hogwarts, here we come!" he grinned as the car began moving.   
****************************************  
The station was quite busy and Harry and Ron found themselves running to catch up with the rest. One by one they ran into the barrier to get to platform nine and three quarters until there were just Hermione, Ron and Harry left.   
"Well, I'll go, shall I?" Hermione said, directing her trolley at the wall. She ran as fast as she could and disappeared into the bricks. Ron motioned for Harry to go.   
"After you," he grinned, bowing low. Harry grinned back and started to line his trolley up. He was about to go when he felt someone tap him on the shoulder.  
"Excuse me?" said a female voice. "But I was wondering if you could tell me how to, well, get onto the platform."  
Harry turned around and saw the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. She must be part Veela - she was tall, skinny and had the shiniest, longest blonde hair he had ever seen. She had a trolley with her, with a black owl in a cage similar to Hedwigs. She smiled slightly and ducked her head.  
Ron nudged Harry. "Sure, we can. You just aim your trolley at that pillar," he said, indicating, "and run as fast as you can into it. You'll just pass through to the platform."  
"You run into the pillar?" She looked doubtful.   
"Yes," Harry said. She still looked a bit confused, so Harry said, "Look, I'll go first, then you just do what I did, ok?"  
She smiled and nodded. "Oh, yes. Okay. Thankyou. By the way, my name is Melisande. I am new at Hogwarts."  
Harry smiled and held out his hand. "Hi, I'm Harry and this is Ron."  
Melisande shook hands with Harry, then Ron.   
Ron seemed to be lost for words and stared at his hand she had shaken with love.  
"Well, here goes," Harry said, running towards the pillar. When he emerged he was on platform nine and three quarters and the Hogwarts Express was waiting for the final passengers. Moments later, Melisande, then Ron emerged. Melisande looked flushed.  
"That was strange," she smiled.  
They left their luggage to be put on the train and found Hermione waiting for them with Ginny in their usual cabin. Harry introduced everyone to Melisande and invited her to sit with them. He couldn't help looking at Melisande out of the corner of his eyes and he was sure Ron was too. She was beautiful and there was something bewitching about her. He just couldn't work it out. He sighed and settled back into the seat, eager to arrive at Hogwarts and begin yet another year of excitement and adventure. 


	3. The Explosion

Disclaimer: any characters who you recognise from "Harry Potter" do not belong to me, nor was I paid to write any of these stories. Any of the characters who you don't recognise, belong to me  
  
  
  
Chapter Three  
  
"So where are you from, Melisande?" Hermione asked a few moments later, as the Hogwarts Express moved off from the platform.   
Melisande smiled politely and replied, "Oh, not too far away. I've come here because my parents wanted me to be under the instruction of Professor Dumbledore. He really is wonderful, isn't he?"  
Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Yes, he is."  
Harry and Ron looked at Hermione, who looked like she was up to something. She's been acting really strange recently, Harry thought to himself. Please don't embarrass the new girl, Miony.   
"I suppose you're good at school work then, if your parents have sent you to Hogwarts for that reason," Hermione said, feeling competitive.  
Melisande simply looked at her pointedly. "Well I do get good marks, I suppose, but the real reason my parents wanted me here was because...well, there was an accident at home. Well, not an accident exactly, but an attack. Voldemort attacked my house and killed my brother. My parents wanted me far away in case he tried to get to me."  
Harry felt the tension in the cart grow. He had never heard anyone casually refer to the Dark Lord as "Voldemort" before, except himself and Dumbledore. Ron's face had turned bright pink as he glared at Hermione, who looked slightly guilty.   
"I'm sorry," she muttered, crossing her arms and looking out of the window. "It must have been awful."  
"Yes," Melisande agreed. She shrugged. "But I'll get him back one day."  
Ginny looked at her in surprise. "You'll fight You-Know-Who?"  
Melisande nodded, her face like thunder. "If it's the last thing I'll do, I'll hunt him. Then I'll kill him."  
There was a shocked silence, which was only interrupted when the food trolley lady knocked on the door and asked if anyone wanted any lollies.  
*************************************  
"Welcome back to Hogwarts, everyone! And now, before we begin the feast, there are a few notices I must tell you." Professor Dumbledore stared down at his pupils through his half-moon glasses. He was standing at the top of the dining hall, goblet in hand, surrounded by the Hogwarts teachers. He cleared his throat and began.   
"It is obvious to all that the Forbidden Forest is, again, off-bounds, unless you wish to wonder around for the rest of your life or be attacked by wild magical animals. As is the third corridor - Mr Filch has asked me to remind you that students found in the corridor will as a consequence, be punished in any way by Mr Filch, within reason, of course."  
There was a pause as many of the students turned to look at the grubby old cleaner who was standing at the back of the hall with his cat, Mrs Norris, who looked more evil than she usually did.   
"Now, students, I would like to announce that we have a new student at our school. I would like to call upon Professor McGonagall, who will invite the student to come up in front of you all and be sorted."  
Professor McGonagall moved to the front of the table as Dumbledore took his seat. She held up a parchment of paper in one hand and the sorting hat in the other. Harry smiled as he remembered being sorted himself, on his first day. The Professor cleared her throat and called out, "Melisande Theddle."  
Harry recognised the girl walking up the aisle towards the teachers desk as the girl who had sat with him on the train. She looked absolutely beautiful and as she walked past the tables, the boys all turned their heads and nudged each other, grinning from ear to ear. Harry noticed Draco turn a funny colour as he looked at Melisande. It was as if every boy in the room suddenly had a crush on Melisande and the girls were all beginning to look annoyed.  
Melisande daintily sat on the stool and Professor McGonagall put the sorting hat on her head, then stepped away. There was a long pause, as every person in the room sat in suspense of what house this beauty would be in. Harry could see the hat moving and wriggling, but it didn't seem to be reaching a conclusion. A murmur began to spread through the hall as many people began to whisper to each other. This was strange, usually the hat decided quicker than this. Perhaps it was because she was from so far away.  
Suddenly Hermione gasped silently. She had been watching Melisande's face and had seen the strangest thing. Her eyes had narrowed and flashed angrily, she had bitten her lower lip and seemed like she was concentrating. She had been the picture of evil, but Hermione blinked and Melisande's face seemed normal again, beautiful and pale.  
Then something stranger happened. The hat exploded. Just like that. In a shower of ribbons and thread, it just exploded with a huge bang. Everyone screamed and Professor McGonagall was thrown to one side. Professor Dumbledore got up and began shouting at everyone to calm down. Hermione felt herself being roughly pushed and nudged and people excitedly twisted this way and that to try to see better. Through all this, Melisande sat there with a shocked look on her face.   
Everyone hushed and Professor Dumbledore announced, "I am sure that what you just witnessed was a complete accident and you should now forget it and continue with your feast. As Melisande already knows many people from Gryffindor, she shall be placed in that house until we can get another sorting hat and sort her properly." With that, he clapped his hands twice and everyone gasped as all sorts of foods appeared on the tables in front of them.   
Melisande came and sat next to Harry, though many people were staring at her strangely. Everyone dug in and the chatter began again, talking about exciting holidays and wonderful new spells. Everyone, that is, except for Hermione, who continued to look, confused and worried, at the girl who had just exploded the Sorting Hat that had sorted Hermione herself, on her first day those years ago at Hogwarts. 


	4. The Heirs of Gotchyn

Disclaimer: Any of the characters who you recognise belong to JK Rowling, not me. I own all the characters who do not appear in Harry Potter books, like Melisande, Gotchyn, etc.  
  
Chapter Four  
  
It turned out that Melisande was, in fact, to put it simply, a whiz. In every subject, she knew the right answers, the right spells, the right pronunciation - everything was perfect, and you didn't need to be an aurora to tell that Hermione was brooding. She wasn't used to having someone as good as her, and especially when that person was beautiful and capturing the attention of Harry. Melisande and Harry were becoming very close friends - on the weekends they would go to Hogsmeade together, they would sit together at dinner and in class and, to put it simply, Hermione and Ginny were getting sick of it. They weren't the only ones.  
Ron had noticed the change in Harry's behavior - he was not really thinking about adventure or doing any of the fun things they used to get up to. He had really changed and Ron was worried.  
"It's that girl," Hermione hissed to him later. Ginny nodded. The three of them were sitting in the Gryffindor lounge room. Harry and Melisande had gone off to the library to do some extra studying.  
"She's strange, that's what it is. I bet there's something fishy going on."  
Ron huffed. "It's just cause she's gorgeous. You two are jealous."  
Ginny looked disgusted. "No, it's not. Don't you see the way he's infatuated with her? I'm sure she's put a spell on him or something."  
"Look, he's obviously in love with her. I don't see why that's so strange." Ron started to look grumpy. "Although, I wish he'd spend more time with us. I mean, we were here long before she was. We fought You-Know-Who with him and if he's just forgotten that, I'll be...."  
At that moment the door opened and Harry and Melisande entered, laughing and carrying big piles of books. Melisande kissed him quickly on the cheek before heading off to her room. Harry turned bright red and came to sit next to Ginny.  
"How are you all today?" he asked airily, putting the books down on the table.  
In response, he got glares from everyone. "Wow," he exclaimed, putting up his hands palms outwards. "What did I do?"  
"As if you didn't know," Ginny huffed, folding her arms across her chest.   
"Yeah," Hermione added. "You're always with Melisande, it makes me sick. She's..."  
Harry stood up, his eyes blazing. "Don't you criticize Melisande in front of me. She's pretty, clever and frankly I..."  
"Harry!" Ron shouted. "She's brainwashing you! There's something strange about her! Didn't you see her blow up the Sorting Hat?"  
"That was an accident!" Harry shouted back. "That hat was old anyway!"  
Ron stood up. "Harry, you've got to be careful! She..."  
"You're just jealous cause I'm spending more time with her than I am with you! She's interesting, she..."  
"Oh and we're not?" Hermione added shrilly, leaping up from the table.   
"What's gotten into you, Harry? You used to be so nice!" Ron shouted.  
Harry's eyes flashed. He plunged his hand into his robes and pulled out his wand, pointing it straight at Ron. Ginny squeaked and covered her eyes.  
Hermione gasped.   
"Harry! What do you think you're doing? Ron's your friend! Stop it!"  
Harry raised his arm and glared at Ron, who was quivering with fright. He'd seen Harry like this before, this mad, but never at him. Suddenly, Harry's arm dropped to his side and he blinked a few times.  
"God, I'm...I'm sorry, Ron. Hermione, Ginny....I'm....sorry," he murmured, looking dazed. "I...I'm going to go to bed. I'm....I'm sorry..." And with that, he left without looking anyone in the eye. There was a stunned silence. Hermione broke it, whispering, "Wow...That...that was scary..."  
Ginny nodded in agreement and stared at the door that Harry had just shut behind him. She blinked back tears. Something was going on, and they had to find out, before something worse happened. Something much worse.  
*************************  
"Something is going on, Minerva, and I don't know what." Professor Dumbledore stood by his desk, gently stroking Fawkes, his Phoenix. He turned on his heel and sat down on his chair. He picked up a piece of parchment from his desk and handed it to Professor McGonagall.   
"I received an owl from the Ministry of Magic. There have been numerous reports of Dark Art activity and only yesterday a Dark Mark was hovering over Azkaban. Now you know as well as I do, that prisoners in Azkaban cannot do magic. Therefore there is someone on the outside who is intent on scaring the population of the wizarding world into thinking that Voldemort may rise again."  
Professor McGonagall took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "I knew this would happen." She opened her eyes and looked at Dumbledore. "Could it be? Has he risen? There are enough Death Eaters to support him. If..."  
"Minerva, I don't know. But I do know that it has something to do with Gotchyn."  
Professor McGonagall looked confused. "Gotchyn? What has it to do with her? I thought she was..."  
Dumbledore smiled painfully. "She is alive, but dying. Her heart will cease to beat very soon. Her family has had the power of Supremacy over the wizarding world for over three thousand years, but the time has come for it to end. She has no heir, which means the next powerful witches and wizards will compete for the title."  
"But what if...the Gotchyn family have always been good and just. What if a dark art family should..." Professor McGonagall looked extremely worried.   
Dumbledore sighed heavily. "The wizarding world as we know it will cease to exist and all our lives will be in danger."  
"Albus, do you know who the heirs are? Are they in danger?"  
Dumbledore slowly rose from his desk and nodded. "Yes, Minerva, I know. The heirs of Gotchyn are Zalibethe, Harry Potter, myself...and Lord Voldemort." 


	5. The Lock of Hair

Disclaimer: Any of the characters who you recognize belong to JK Rowling and not me. I own any of the characters who you don't know, like Melisande and Gotchyn  
  
Chapter Five  
  
Ginny tried to keep still and not breathe. She was underneath Harry's bed, curled up in a ball, waiting for Harry to come in. Ok, so it wasn't the best place to be and it was against school rules, but this was an emergency. Hermione and Ron were in the lounge playing a game of Shrieking Snap and the noise would be too much for Melisande and Harry to endure, so they would go somewhere more private (ie. Harry's bedroom) to talk. Then, Ginny would listen in to their conversation and hopefully figure out what it was about Melisande that made Hermione, Ron, and her blood run cold.   
She knew it was eavesdropping and Harry would object, but the three of them decided that, as Harry wasn't exactly himself, he wouldn't mind.   
Ginny hadn't been waiting long before she heard the door open and the sounds of shrieking and shouting rose up the stairs. Hermione and Ron must be having a ball, she thought, as she tucked her legs closer to her body. She watched two sets of feet walk over to the bed and sit down. They were dangling off the side of the bed dangerously close to her but she managed to keep quiet and out of the way. Harry had shut the door so they thought they were the only people in the room.  
"I don't know what's gotten into them," Ginny heard Harry say as he moved about on the bed. "And Ginny. They're all acting strange."  
Ginny stifled a squeak as some of her hair got caught to the bedsprings. Her hand over her mouth, she stared up towards the two lumps in the mattress, praying they didn't find her.  
They hadn't seemed to notice, because at that moment, Melisande said something extremely strange. "Harry, can I have a lock of your hair?"  
Ginny felt like gagging. How corny was that? Harry seemed to think so too.  
"Why do you want a lock of my hair?" he asked.  
"So I can keep it in my locket, so you'll always be close to my heart, no matter what happens." Melisande's voice sounded milky and purry.   
Ginny made a face, even though no one could see her.  
She felt one lump get up off the bed. "Ok, then," Harry said. He walked over to a chest of drawers and got out a pair of scissors. He laughed as he came and sat down again. "You chose the best looking bit," handing the scissors to Melisande.  
Ginny heard the snip of metal and guessed Melisande had chopped of a lock of his hair. She felt strange...almost jealous. She'd give anything to have a lock of Harry's hair in her locket. Suddenly Melisande laughed.  
"Harry, you know, I almost can feel us becoming one," she said.  
Ginny heard Harry breathe in deeply and she figured they were kissing.   
Great, she thought. I'm stuck under the bed as they get it on.   
Suddenly there was a bang at the door. She felt the bed springs move quickly and Harry and Melisande pulled away. Harry went to the door and opened it. Peeking out, Ginny could see Hermione.   
"Harry, I just thought I'd let you know that Ron and I have finished our game, so if you want the lounge, it's all yours." Hermione glanced casually downwards at Ginny, but Harry didn't notice.   
"Yeah, ok, thanks," he said gruffly, obviously annoyed.  
He motioned to Melisande and they all disappeared down the stairs. Ginny waited a few moments before crawling out from under the bed. Fat lot of use that was, she thought, fixing her now crumpled hair. She peeked around the corner and saw that neither Harry nor Melisande were, in fact, in the lounge room. She tiptoed down the stairs and ran across to the girl's dormitories. Hermione would be disappointed that all Ginny had found out was that Harry had given Melisande a lock of his hair. Nothing gory or strange about it.  
**********************  
"He what?!" Hermione shouted, before clapping a hand over her mouth.  
Ginny looked confused, as did Ron. "Miony, it's only a lock of hair. It's not like he..."  
Hermione opened her eyes widely. "Ron, haven't you ever read "101 Spells for Witches and Wizards"?" she asked.  
Ron sheepishly shrugged his shoulders. "No, I haven't."  
Hermione impatiently cleared her throat. "If someone gives a lock of his or her hair freely to another person, he is giving his soul to them," she announced.  
Ginny looked confused. "You mean that Melisande can control Harry? Like the devil or something?"  
Hermione nodded. "Well, it could just be simply her wanting his hair for her locket, of course. She might just have a crush on him. But, if she knows about the spell and if she casts the appropriate spell, then she will be able to control him."  
"Like tell him to go and do something?" Ron asked.  
"Well, not entirely. It doesn't make the person a robot, but it does give her some control over him. It's a step towards having complete control over the person." Hermione looked worried. "And it all adds up, the strange things she has been doing."  
Ginny shrugged. "But what if she just likes him? I mean, I'd kill to have a lock of his hair in my locket..."  
She stalled at Ron's angry face. "Well I would!" she insisted.  
Ron looked at Hermione. "What should we do?"  
Hermione sighed and thought. "We'll watch them. Keep an eye on what they do. We can't very well go and accuse her of doing something if she's innocent. It'll just make Harry even madder at us."  
Ginny nodded in agreement. "Ok. Do you think anyone else would know about her? Should we find out if anything strange is going on? If there is, it might be linked."  
Ron scoffed. "Yeah, but who can we ask? We can't really go up to Professor Dumbledore and say, "Excuse me, but is there something really top secret going on that you would like to let us know?", can we?"  
Hermione jumped up, snapping her fingers. "Got it!" she said enthusiastically.  
Ron grinned. "Hope it's not contagious," he said.  
"Haha," Hermione said, looking at him strangely.   
"What have you got?" Ginny asked her. "Who have you thought of?"  
Hermione smiled. "Hagrid."  
Ron laughed. "Who else?" 


End file.
